Social Work with Immigrants and Refugees: Legal Issues, Clinical Skills and Advocacy

This book is an optimal tool for instructors and students of graduate classes in social work and related disciplines."

--Journal of Immigrant and Minority Health

I applaud social work students, professors, and social workers who seek to serve and empower the immigrant community. This text is a great tool toward raising awareness of the many issues immigrants face, and helping them find solutions."
--Frank Sharry, Executive Director, America's Voice

The book is a major contribution to social workers and their clients as it addresses advocacy on behalf of immigrants and refugees during a social, economic and political period that restricts immigrants' rights and service access."
--Dr. Diane Drachman, Associate Professor, University of Connecticut School of Social Work

Successful social work with immigrants must begin with an understanding of their legal status and how that status impacts their housing, employment, health care, education, and virtually every other aspect of life. Chang-Muy and Congress present social workers with the only book on the market to emphasize the legal aspect of immigrant issues as well as critical practice and advocacy issues.

Topics discussed include historical and current trends in immigration, applicable theories for practice with immigrants, policy and advocacy methods, and the need for cultural competence. By providing comprehensive coverage of both the legal and practice issues of this complex field, this book will help social service professionals and graduate students increase their cultural sensitivity and work more effectively with immigrants.

Key Features:

• Covers the latest aspects of the immigration debate and discusses how social workers are affected by emerging immigration policies
• Discusses special populations such as refugees, elderly immigrants, and victims of international trafficking
• Includes case studies on the most critical issues immigrants face today: legal processes, physical and mental health issues, employment difficulties, family conflicts, and more

Instructional Materials Available!
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Fernando Chang-Muy, MA, JD, is the Thomas O'Boyle Lecturer in Law at the University of Pennsylvania Carey School of Law, with appointments at the Graduate School of Social Policy and Practice and the School of Arts and Sciences. His courses and areas of expertise include international human rights, US immigration policies, international refugee law, the impact of race in diverse communities, and nonprofit leadership issues. He served as Legal Officer with both the Office of the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) and the UN World Health Organization (WHO), AIDS Program. He also served as the first director of Swarthmore College's Intercultural Center, as well as Assistant Dean for Student Affairs, advisor to the Provost on Equal Opportunity, and lecturer on International Human Rights in the Peace and Conflict Studies. He began his legal career as a Reginald Heber Smith Fellow at Community Legal Services in Philadelphia serving as Director of the Southeast Asian Refugee Project, providing free legal aid to low-income immigrants and refugees in Philadelphia.

Elaine P. Congress, DSW, MSW, MA, LCSW, is professor and associate dean at the Fordham University Graduate School of Social Service. At the United Nations, she represents three NGOs (Non-government Organizations), the International Federation of Social Workers (IFSW), the Institute of Multicultural Counseling and Education Services (IMCES), and Fordham University. Each year she oversees a group of Fordham graduate students at the United Nations. Dr. Congress is also a member of the executive committee of the NGO Committee on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, is vice-chair of the NGO Committee on Mental Health, and is active on the NGO Committee on Migration and the Committee on the Status of Women. She has served as the North American representative on the IFSW's Permanent Committee on Ethical Issues.